Cash-starved Kenyan Premier League club Nairobi City Stars is up for sale. Club chairman Peter Jabuya says he is open to the idea of selling it to any individual or company that would redeem its floundering fortunes, NairobiNews reports.
With a shoe-string budget, City Stars has endured a rather difficult run in the top tier league in the last four years. Jabuya, who has single-handedly bankrolled the club for the past seven years after the club changed its name from World Hope to Nairobi City Stars in 2009, says he can no longer afford to finance the team.
“We are looking to give the club to anybody out there who will be wiling,” he said. “It (selling the club) is something that I have contemplated and I can now report that I will do so if we get a prospective buyer; whether an individual or corporate, I will be listening to offers.
“World over clubs change hands and in some cases investors come in, pump good money which in turn changes the fortunes of the affected clubs. I will not be a stumbling block if we get a buyer. All I want is success for the team and to see it grow,” he says.
City Stars, like the proverbial cat with nine lives, has in the past successfully fended off relegation threats amidst the financial turmoil. But there is a general feeling that they may not be lucky this time round. They are at the tail end of the 16 team table on 13 points after 22 rounds of matches.
Jabuya’s shock admission will no doubt send shock waves in an industry that has been struggling to find its footing after years of wrangles and jitters in the corporate sector. Jabuya said the annual Ksh7.2 million grants from the league management body is a drop in the ocean compared to the club’s Sh 30million annual budget.
“I have been forced to dig deep into my pocket for the last seven years to run this club, but now the time is right to let go,” he added.
The difficulties the club has encountered are perhaps best epitomized by the changes in its technical bench which saw former international John ‘Bobby’ Ogolla throw in the towel mid-way through the season and his place came Ugandan Richard Pinto Tamale, who has also failed to get the best of the squad.
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